The labour movement’s use of social media and perspective on digital labour and audience commodity : the case of trade unionists in Turkey

Abstract

The study examines the extent to which individuals actively involved in trade unions in Turkey, and holding various positions within these structures, are familiar with the concept of digital labour. Also explored is whether such individuals perceive their online activities, particularly on Twitter, as unpaid labour. For this purpose, the snowball sampling method was employed in the research, and semi-structured interviews were conducted with 11 participants, namely professional unionists and union workers who create content on Twitter. The study revealed that the participants overlooked immaterial labour while assessing the concept of labour and were unfamiliar with digital labour. It is shown that while they are knowledgeable about various aspects of the labour movement, greater awareness regarding the prevalence of unpaid labour via social media is required. The presented research contributes to the literature by offering the perspective of trade unionists with respect to digital labour.